The United Nations Global Initiative to Fight Human Trafficking (UN.GIFT) was conceived to promote the global fight on human trafficking, on the basis of international agreements reached at the UN. To date, 140 parties have signed the Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons especially Women and Children, which supplements the Palermo Convention against transnational organized crime.

UN.GIFT was launched in March 2007 by the International Labour Organization (ILO), the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE).

UN.GIFT was made possible by a grant of the United Arab Emirates and has since received additional financial support from the Governments of Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Switzerland as well as UNICEF, the United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM), the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the United Nations Fund for International Partnerships and public donations.

UN.GIFT works with all stakeholders - governments, business, academia, civil society and the media - to support each other's work, create new partnerships and develop effective tools to fight human trafficking.

The Global Initiative is based on a simple principle: human trafficking is a crime of such magnitude and atrocity that it cannot be dealt with successfully by any government alone. This global problem requires a global, multi-stakeholder strategy that builds on national efforts throughout the world.

To pave the way for this strategy, stakeholders must coordinate efforts already underway, increase knowledge and awareness, provide technical assistance; promote effective rights-based responses; build capacity of state and non-state stakeholders; foster partnerships for joint action; and above all, ensure that everybody takes responsibility for this fight.

By encouraging and facilitating cooperation and coordination, UN.GIFT aims to create synergies among the anti-trafficking activities of UN agencies, international organizations and other stakeholders to develop the most efficient and cost-effective tools and good practices.

Mission Statement

UN.GIFT aims to mobilize state and non-state actors to eradicate human trafficking by reducing both the vulnerability of potential victims and the demand for exploitation in all its forms; ensuring adequate protection and support to those who fall victim; and supporting the efficient prosecution of the criminals involved, while respecting the fundamental human rights of all persons.

In carrying out its mission, UN.GIFT will increase the knowledge and awareness on human trafficking; promote effective rights-based responses; build capacity of state and non-state actors; and foster partnerships for joint action against human trafficking.

These are some of the things you can do to help fight human trafficking:

Be informed! Educate yourself about human trafficking by reading about it. Follow events in the news. Keep your eyes open - human trafficking is happening all around us.

Raise awareness! Talk to friends, family and colleagues. You could even start talking to your local politicians and authorities.

Get involved! Participate in an anti-trafficking movement in your area and get involved in its activities and campaigns (e.g. hold events, distribute posters, leaflets etc.) in your neighborhood and in schools.

Encourage businesses! Be a responsible consumer! Inform yourself on the labour policies of companies to ensure their products are free from slave labour and other forms of exploitation. If possible, buy fair trade products.

Seek support! If you suspect that someone has been trafficked report it to the institutions or assistance facilities dealing with human trafficking in your area.

From impoverished rural villages to mega-cities, from wealthy sub-urban paradises to inner city ghettos, hundreds of thousands of people become victims of human trafficking every year, through force or deception.

Although solid statistics are notoriously hard to obtain, one thing is for sure: human trafficking happens everywhere.

This is why UN.GIFT is active worldwide, with events and campaigns to raise awareness; with research programmes to collect data and statistics on the trafficking trends; and with new alliances that bring together state and non-state actors that want to stop human trafficking.

Following her appearance at the Vienna Forum to Fight Human Trafficking in February 2008, in this Public Service Announcement (PSA), Emma Thompson voices for the victims of human trafficking: Video 1(0:33)Video 2(1:03)

UN.GIFT.HUB (United Nations Global Initiative to Fight Human Trafficking) is working with all stakeholders - governments, business, academia, civil society and the media to disseminate.KNOWLEDGE.participate. We are formulating the HUB under these three concepts, as an online platform where everyone ...

> About Message from the UN Secretary General: International Day for the Abolition of Slavery

The International Day for the Abolition of Slavery, 2 December, marks the date of the adoption, by the General Assembly, of the United Nations Co

nvention for the Suppression of the Traffic in Persons and of the Exploitation of the Prostitution of Others ( resolution 317(IV) of 2 December 1949).

The focus of this day is on eradicating contemporary forms of slavery, such as trafficking in persons, sexual exploitation, the worst forms of child labour, forced marriage, and the forced recruitment of children for use in armed conflict.

Today, 21 million women, men and children are trapped in slavery all over the world. The International Labour Organization (ILO) has teamed up with prominent artists, athletes and advocates in its new campaign to End Slavery Now.

In 2007 the UN marked the 200th Anniversary of the Abolition of the Transatlantic Slave Trade on 25 March. In 2008 the International Day of Remembrance of the Victims of Slavery and the Transatlantic Slave Trade became an annual observance

In honor of the International Day for the Abolition of Slavery, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon issued the following message:

"Eighty-five years have passed since the entry into force of the Slavery Convention, yet this dehumanizing practice has acquired new manifestations in the 21st century. Every day, in all regions of the world, women are trafficked, sold and locked in brothels for sexual exploitation. Little girls are forcibly married, sexually abused and used as domestic workers. Children work in mines, setting explosives and breathing toxic dust. Others are abducted and turned into soldiers, obliged to kill and torture. Men, separated from their families, are forced to work in plantations or locked in clandestine factories without any salary to repay never-ending debts. The movement against slavery brought together the international community to declare that slavery practices constitute an affront to our common humanity and that no human being should be another's property. Today, governments, civil society and the private sector must unite to eradicate all contemporary forms of slavery. We have important tools with which to advance this goal. The United Nations Voluntary Trust Fund on Contemporary Forms of Slavery, for example, extends humanitarian, financial and legal assistance to victims. Over the past two decades, the Fund has assisted tens of thousands of victims of slavery in more than 90 countries. Yet the Fund is in dire need of funding to fulfil its mandate and respond to the growing need. On the International Day for the Abolition of Slavery, I call on governments and business enterprises to contribute to the UN Voluntary Trust Fund on Contemporary Forms of Slavery and its activities in support of victims worldwide. Together, let us do our utmost for the millions of victims throughout the world who are held in slavery and deprived of their human rights and dignity."

Article republished in English with kind permission of the author, and translated by Fer Amaral, Gender Researcher for Safe World for Women The Story that Shocked the World The death of a 23 year-old Indian student, victim of a sexual attack

( Anti-Trafficking Review) - Anti-trafficking funding and work has mushroomed since the 1990s. Lacking is analysis of those anti-trafficking funds - where they come from, who they go to, what they are meant to do, what they actually achieve, and indeed whether they are needed.

Donors, organisations and trafficked persons' priorities are not always aligned when it comes to how to spend money. In a first indication of a global mismatch between donors and organisations, AWID's 'Where's the Money for Women's Rights?' survey of over 1000 women's rights organisations shows that donors prioritise anti-trafficking (placing it in their top 10 list of priority issues to fund) more than women's organisations (who do not see anti-trafficking among top 10 priority issues). Trafficked persons may or may not benefit from money flows aimed in their direction, or indeed may suffer as a result of anti-trafficking spending. Many organisations specifically dedicated to anti-trafficking think donors do not prioritise this issue enough. Others feel anti-trafficking funds, especially for more surface-level awareness campaigns, divert attention and money away from substantial human rights work on issues concerning workers, migrants, woman and children.

Every year thousands of young men and women make the treacherous journey from Eritrea to Egypt via Sudan in search of a better life. Along the route many fall victim to unscrupulous traffickers who kidnap them and demand ransom money from their families. Some are able to pay and their loved ones are released. Others are not so lucky.

The BBC's Mike Thomson recently talked to the victims of this brutal trade.

> Publications The Protection Project: 100 Best Practices in Combating Trafficking in Persons

Over the past decade, civil society has played a pivotal role in the fight against trafficking in persons. A multifaceted and complex phenomenon, trafficking in persons must be addressed at various levels. Members of civil society have worked alone or by joining forces with law enforcement groups, legislators, national governments, and international organizations while designing strategies of prevention, protection, prosecution, advocacy, and research. The Protection Project encourages the dissemination of information about the best ways to combat trafficking in persons by recommending five main components of civil society: (a) nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), (b) corporations, (c) academia, (d) media, and (e) faith-based organizations. The Protection Project’s 100 Best Practices in Combating Trafficking in Persons: The Role of Civil Society offers examples of some successful initiatives that have been undertaken by representatives of those five main categories. This publication is intended to serve as a guide in the design and implementation of anti-trafficking practices worldwide, as well as to inform the general public about outstanding contributions to the fight against trafficking in persons.

> About ( UN Women) - Last week, UNICEF announced a new initiative calling on ordinary citizens, lawmakers and governments to combat violence against children, building on the growing outrage of recent attacks against children across the world. From the shooting of education youth activist âª#‎Malalaâ¬ Yousafzai in âª#‎Pakistanâ¬ to the gang rapes in âª#‎Indiaâ¬, these attacks against girls underscore a grave human rights violation that often goes unseen or underreported. Read more and see what you can do to âª#‎ENDViolenceâ¬: http://www.unicef.org/endviolence/ ---

Bringing together the global Counter Child Trafficking community to connect, share and learn from what works on the frontline. • 3 consecutive days • Global • Across time zones • Accessible via desktop, tablet or smartphone • Free to register and participate online

Should you wish to attend can you register as a member of the organisation " Slavery Today " Care2 http://www.care2.com/c2c/group/dmrv & Facebook https://www.facebook.com/groups/slatoday/Thank you this should be a very interesting conference.

> Civil-Society ( The No Project) - Slavery is not History. Yet. Our choice. Get smart. Check out favourite links on homepage. www.thenoproject.org Please share this slide. The list is not complete... ---

> Civil-Society ( The No Project) - BE SMART: if the offer of work or a 'romantic life', 'fresh start' in another city or country seems 'to be good to be true' - it could be one big lie to hell. LEARN THE ANTI-TRAFFICKING HELPLINE NUMBER IN YOUR COUNTRY. USE IT.http://www.thenoproject.org/ ---